September 2008
02/09: First Meeting of the College of Commissioners after the summer break. It will take place at the European Parliament in Strasbourg.
03-04/09: Commissioner Michel will attend the third High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness; Accra, Ghana. "More, Faster, Better" aid is at the heart of the EU’s development policy to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. This forum aims to focus global donors on the importance of effectiveness of aid delivery. This forum is designed to help developing countries in their fight against poverty by making aid delivery more transparent, accountable and results-oriented.
04-06/09: European Civic Days: "Mobility, dialogue, participation: towards active European citizenship", La Rochelle, France. The French presidency of the EU will host this major event in collaboration with the European Civic Forum and the European Commission. The European Civic Days will focus on promoting Active European citizenship through mobility, dialogue and participation.
17/09: Commission proposal foreseen for a Regulation on the supply of food to the most deprived persons in the EU. The objective of this measure is to make foodstuff available to charitable organisations which distribute them to poor persons in the Community.
23/09: Communication on the Action Plan on Drugs and proposal for a new Action Plan on Drugs. The European model is reflected in the EU Drugs Strategy, which covers a period of eight years (2005-2012). This Strategy has been translated into more than 80 actions in the EU Drugs Action Plan (2005-2008). The drugs phenomenon is one of the major concerns of the citizens of Europe The EU has up to 2 million illegal drug users. The use of drugs, particularly among young people is at historically high levels.
25/09: High-Level Meeting in New York for the Millennium Development Goals with President Barroso and Commissioners Michel and Ferrero-Waldner. In last European Council, the European Commission and the EU Member States reaffirmed their commitment to reach a collective overseas development assistance (ODA) target of 0.56% GNI by 2010 and 0.7% by 2015. These commitments should see EU ODA double to over 66 bn euros by 2010.
29-30/09 (Paris): 2nd European Equality Summit – equal opportunities ministers, heads of equality bodies, companies, media and NGOs from around the EU will meet for the second European equality summit to discuss follow-up to the European Year of Equal Opportunities for All.
Communication on a strategic European framework for international science and technology cooperation. Fifth initiative of the European Research Area package, to enhance international cooperation on research.
October 2008:
01/10: Launch of Europe for Patients theme in Brussels. This will mark the beginning of an intense three month period of focusing on health care and patients issues in Europe. The launch will unveil the logo for this period and introduce the different initiatives for the months to come.
02/10: Second Nanotechnology Conference: The European Commission is organising in, Brussels the Workshop "Safety for success" which will bring together scientists, risk assessors, public authorities, industry, and NGOs to discuss the scientific state-of-the-art, international developments, risk governance, and to identify appropriate means to strengthen guidance in support of the responsible development of nanotechnologies.
02/10: Last meeting of the Pharmaceutical Forum: The forum is jointly chaired by Commissioner for Health, Androulla Vassiliou, and Commissioner for Enterprise, Günter Verheugen.
06-09/10: OPEN DAYS European Week of Regions and Cities. A record 216 regions and cities from 32 countries have signed up as partners for the sixth annual OPEN DAYS, organised by the Committee of the Regions (CoR) and the European Commission’s Regional Policy Directorate-General. The seminars and workshops will focus on first experiences of implementing the 345 cohesion policy programmes running from 2007-2013, worth a total investment of about EUR 500 billion in EU and national funds.
15/10: Green Paper on regulating the quality of Agricultural Products foreseen. The green paper will explore ideas for farmers and producers who want to valorise their production or orient production towards quality and better meet consumer demand.
15-16/10: European Council in Brussels
21/10: White Paper on adaptation to adverse impacts of Climate Change foreseen following-up on the consultation of the Green Paper on Adaptation adopted by the European Commission in June 2007 and listing specific actions on adaptation to be initiated by the Commission. These adaptation measures aim to safeguard human well-being, to reduce vulnerability to climate change and to help adapt to its more probable impacts.
30-31/10: Ministerial conference "Fight Against Alzheimer’s Disease and Similar Diseases" organised in Paris by the French Presidency with the European Commission in order to adopt a resolution to be submitted to the Employment and Social Affairs Council (15-16 December 2008) and adopted as Council Conclusions.
Revision of Pharmaceutical legislation : a) Communication on the future of the single market in pharmaceuticals for human use; b) Directive on Pharmaceuticals - Information to patients; c) Strengthening and rationalising EU Pharmacovigilance
Ageing population – the Commission will adopt a Communication on the needs of an ageing population in European society, looking at diverse issues such as housing and care.
Action Plan on urban mobility, follow-up to the debate launched by the Green Paper ’Towards a new culture for urban mobility’, adopted in September 2007. It will propose possible actions at the EU, national, regional and local level – including actions by the industry and individual citizens. The Action Plan will carefully identify the appropriate instruments for each action.
November 2008:
05/11: Rare Diseases (RD) Action Plan. High-quality diagnosis, treatment and information for people suffering from rare diseases are priority issues for the European Commission. On the basis of present scientific knowledge, between 5 000 and 8 000 distinct RD affect up to 6% of the total EU population at one point in life. In other words, around 15 million people in the European Union (with 27 MS) are affected or will be affected by a RD.
12/11: Reforming the budget, Changing Europe. Following the recent public consultation on the EU budget reform, the results of the consultation will be presented at a conference in Brussels, where discussions on the European Union’s future budgetary priorities will also take place.
15-17/11: The third edition of the European Development Days will take place in Strasbourg (France). This is the main European meeting of decision-makers in the field of international development cooperation.
18/11: The Agriculture/Fisheries Council is expected to reach a political agreement on the "Health Check" of the CAP, proposed by the Commission in May. The Health Check is an answer to three main questions: How to make the direct aid system more effective and simpler?; How to make market support instruments, originally conceived for a Community of Six, relevant in the world we live in now?; and How to confront new challenges, from climate change, to biofuels, water management and the protection of biodiversity?
26/11: Adoption of patient safety health package: Communication and Council Recommendations foreseen on patient safety and quality of health services including the prevention and control of Health care associated infections.
Adoption of the Commission Proposal for a Council Recommendation on the smoke-free environment. According to our last Eurobarometer, more than 80% of European Union citizens are in favour of banning smoking in public places, both in workplaces and any other indoor public places. Passive smoking kills some 80 000 people a year in the EU.
Organ Package: Commission Communication on strengthened coordination on organ donation and transplantation and Draft Directive on Quality and Safety of Organs.
December 2008:
01-02/12: European Day of People with Disabilities conference in Brussels.
11-12/12: European Council in Brussels.
15/12: Last Meeting of the College of Commissioners for 2008.
